How to Look After Your Longboard: Maintenance Guide
Longboards get ridden further and left outside more than skateboards do, and they wear differently because of it. Wheels cone harder, bearings see more water, and bushings quietly compress until one day the board wobbles on a hill it never used to.
Fifteen minutes a month covers all of it.
The short version
- Every few rides: check axle nuts and kingpins. They back off.
- Every 4 to 6 weeks: rotate and flip the wheels.
- Every 2 to 3 months: clean and re-lubricate the bearings.
- Every couple of months: look at the bushings.
- After any wet ride: deal with it that day, not next weekend.
- Centreset wheels can be flipped. Doing it doubles the life of a set.
- Board feels wobbly on a hill it used to handle? Bushings, almost always.
What we cover
Maintenance schedule · Rotating and flipping wheels · Bearings · Bushings · Hardware and trucks · Deck and grip · Riding in the wet · FAQ
What is the maintenance schedule for a longboard?
| Task | How often | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Check axle nuts and kingpins | Every few rides | They vibrate loose. A loose axle nut destroys a bearing |
| Rotate and flip wheels | Every 4 to 6 weeks | Longboard wheels cone badly. Flipping roughly doubles a set |
| Clean and re-lubricate bearings | Every 2 to 3 months | Grit plus old lubricant becomes grinding paste |
| Inspect bushings | Every couple of months | They compress and crack, and that is what causes wobbles |
| Check pivot cups | Every couple of months | Worn cups make the turn vague and squeaky |
| Check grip tape and deck | Every ride, visually | Lifting grip and delamination both start at the edges |
| Full strip and rebuild | Once a season | Catches everything at once and resets how it rides |
Rotating and flipping longboard wheels
Longboard wheels cone worse than skateboard wheels because you carve in one direction more than the other, and because commuters push with the same foot every time. The result is a taper that makes the board pull to one side.
Rotate diagonally. Front left swaps with back right, front right with back left.
Flip them at the same time, if they are centreset. Centreset wheels have the core in the middle, so they are symmetrical and can be turned around to put the worn edge on the outside. Offset and sideset wheels cannot be flipped, which is one of the strongest arguments for buying centreset.
Do this every four to six weeks and a set lasts considerably longer. Skip it and you will be buying wheels twice as often.
Replace them when they have coned into an obvious taper, flat-spotted from a locked slide, or worn down enough that you notice the roll speed dropping. A set is $70 to $90.
Cleaning longboard bearings
Same bearings as a skateboard, 8mm bore and 22mm outside, and the same method. Longboards just see more of the conditions that kill them, because they get ridden further and in worse weather.
- Remove the axle nuts and slide the wheels off, keeping the speed washers together.
- Pry the bearings out using the truck axle as a lever.
- Remove the rubber shields with a pin at the inner edge.
- Soak in a solvent and agitate. Never water.
- Dry completely. Any moisture left inside rusts the races within days.
- Two or three drops of lubricant each. More attracts dirt.
- Refit shields, press back into the wheels, reassemble with the washers in order.
If you run bearing spacers, keep them with their wheels. They sit between the two bearings and let you tighten the axle nut fully without binding, which matters more on a longboard because you are running larger wheels at speed.
When to replace bushings
This is the longboard-specific one, and it is the maintenance item most riders never do.
Bushings compress under every turn. Over months they lose rebound and stop returning the truck to centre properly. The board does not look any different. It just starts wobbling on a hill it used to handle fine, and the rider assumes they have got worse.
Replace them when:
- They are visibly cracked, split or deformed
- The board feels vague and mushy, but tightening the kingpin makes it refuse to turn
- You have started getting speed wobbles on familiar ground
- Your weight has changed meaningfully since you bought the board
Bushings are $6 to $20. Pick hardness by rider weight rather than by feel, and check the pivot cups while you are in there, since a dry or worn cup causes the squeak most people blame on the bushings.
Bushing hardness by weight · Shop bushings
Hardware and trucks
Longboards vibrate more than skateboards over distance, so fasteners work loose faster.
- Axle nuts. Tight enough that the wheel does not rattle sideways, loose enough that it spins freely. Overtightening is the most common cause of a board that feels slow.
- Kingpin nuts. Check they have not backed off. Re-set the tension if the turn feels different to last week.
- Mounting bolts. Especially on drop-through decks, where the trucks pass through the deck and the load path is different. Check them monthly.
- Pivot cups. A squeak on turning is almost always a dry pivot cup. A little wax or lubricant fixes it.
A skate T-tool does every fastener on the board and costs around $10.
Deck and grip tape
Longboard decks last far longer than skateboard decks because you are not repeatedly slamming the tail into concrete. They die from water and from impact instead.
- Check the edges for delamination. Plies separating at the edge means water has got in. It does not reverse.
- Composite decks are more water tolerant than pressed maple but not immune. Check around the truck mounts.
- Grip tape lifts at the edges once water gets underneath. Replace the sheet rather than trying to re-stick it.
- Coarse longboard grip wears faster than it looks. If your feet are sliding on a hill, that is the grip, not you.
Store it indoors and off the ground. A longboard left leaning in a carport through a Melbourne winter will not be the same board in spring.
What does riding in the wet cost you?
More than on a skateboard, because you ride further and faster.
Bearings. Steel races rust and pit. This is the real damage and it is not reversible.
The deck. Water soaks in, plies swell, the board loses its flex character. Composite decks fare better than maple.
Grip. Water gets under the edges and lifts it, and wet grip is slick underfoot.
Traction. The one people forget. Wet urethane grips far less, so your braking distance is longer and your carve can let go without warning. Ride slower and brake earlier.
Caught out? Dry the board, spin the wheels hard to throw the water out, then pull the bearings and re-lubricate them the same day.
Longboard maintenance FAQ
How often should you rotate longboard wheels?
Every four to six weeks of regular riding, and flip them at the same time if they are centreset. Longboard wheels cone badly because most people push and carve in one direction, and flipping a centreset wheel roughly doubles the life of a set.
When should you replace longboard bushings?
When they crack or deform visibly, or when the board feels vague no matter how you adjust the kingpin. Bushings compress over time and lose their rebound, which shows up as speed wobbles before it shows up as anything you can see.
Can you ride a longboard in the rain?
You can, but it costs you. Water rusts steel bearings, soaks into the deck and makes grip tape lift. Wet urethane also grips far less, so braking distances and cornering both change. Dry it and re-lubricate the bearings the same day.
How long do longboard wheels last?
Months for a commuter, weeks if you slide regularly, since sliding is deliberately abrasive. Replace them when they cone into an obvious taper, flat spot, or wear down enough to lose roll speed. A set runs $70 to $90.
What maintenance does a longboard need?
Check the axle nuts and kingpins every few rides, rotate and flip wheels every four to six weeks, clean bearings every two to three months, and inspect bushings every couple of months. Fifteen minutes a month covers all of it.
Why does my longboard feel slow?
Usually overtightened axle nuts or dirty bearings, in that order. Back the nuts off until each wheel spins freely with a barely detectable amount of side play. If that does not fix it, the bearings need cleaning rather than replacing.
Bring it in and we will look at it
If your board has started wobbling, pulling to one side or feeling slow, bring it to 435A Bridge Road, Richmond. It is usually bushings, wheel wear or an overtightened nut, and often it costs nothing to sort. Nobody on our floor works on commission.
Free shipping Australia wide on orders over $90. Call 03 9421 2293.
Keep reading: Trucks, Wheels and Bushings · Learn to Longboard · What Size Longboard Do I Need? · How to Choose a Longboard · Skateboard Maintenance Guide
Shop: Wheels · Bushings · Bearings · Grip Tape · Skate Tools